We've chosen this home office space for our Room of the Month to illustrate just how much big use you can get out of a small space, if you pay attention to the Sheffield Guidelines to Interior Design: function, mood, and harmony.

Having a huge window with a great view doesn't hurt, either.

Here, we see what once was a small corner off a living room, opened up to become a home office for a busy real estate agent.

Sheffield Top Tip: Whenever you're working with a tiny space, you want to have every corner serve a function, without making the room seem too utilitarian. Try to think creatively: if you need a writing surface some of the time but not all the time, maybe you can have a shelf that flips up when not in use

Another option is a desk with a writing tablet that slides out; you don't have to buy a desk with this, as you can easily install it yourself after a visit to the hardware store.

If you want extra seating for the occasional visitor, find a folding chair or a stool that can be tucked away when not in use.

Looking first at function, consider that this office is only five feet wide at the widest end and three feet wide at the narrowest. And yet the space fully serves the purpose of home office, providing everything one needs for working at home. The bookshelf at the far end of the space holds important books and albums of show sheets, and the full-size desk provides a workspace large enough for folders, pens, and notepads. While a full-size computer and telephone
would crowd this desk, luckily there's plenty of space for a laptop and a cell phone.

The rolling file cabinet under the desk offers a little storage for desk necessities, and the bottom drawer holds important files. The office chair is ergonomically correct, and provides good, comfortable support throughout the workday.

In this case, the homeowner actually installed this window when she decided she wanted to create the office space in this corner; without the window, the corner would have felt more like a prison than like a workspace. Now, the mood is cheerful and casual. The floral-print easy chair provides a comfy place for a client to sit, and the plant on the desk and on the closer bookshelf add a homey touch, as well as bringing the outdoors inside. When privacy is
desired, or for providing more insulation in a room, blinds or shades.

Finally, it isn't hard to harmonize a small space such as this, but this is the one criticism we have of the space. If the floral-print chair were covered in the same fabric as the desk chair, we'd have more of a unified feeling here, which is especially important in a small space. Likewise, replacing the painting of a seaside scene on the wall with something more simple
and which echoes the scene outside the window would pull the room together more. Another option for continuing the seaside look would be using sea-themed wallpaper if even as a single eye-catching accent wall.

Still, given the tiny size of the space, this office makes a big impact, and lets the real estate agent who works in it get plenty done before dashing out to show another home.

-Sarah Van Arsdale

Source: Sheffield School of Interior Design
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